Witches of Pennsylvania with Thomas White
Saturday, October 26, 2013

Coffee & Crime author breakfast at 10 am

Join us for coffee and conversation as we investigate the crime of witchcraft with folklorist Thomas White. Just in time for Halloween!

Since William Penn presided over Pennsylvania’s only official witch trial in 1684, witchcraft and folk magic have been a part of our local history. English and German settlers brought their beliefs in magic with them from the Old World-sometimes with dangerous consequences. In 1802, an Allegheny County judge helped an accused witch escape an angry mob. Susan Mummey was not so fortunate. In 1934, she was shot and killed in her home by a young Schuylkill County man who was convinced that she had cursed him. Thomas White traces the history and lore of witchcraft and the occult that quietly live on in Pennsylvania even today

Thomas White is the University Archivist and Curator of Special Collections in the Gumberg Library at Duquesne University. He is also an Adjunct Lecturer in Duquesne's History Department and an Adjunct Professor of History at La Roche College.

The event is free, but reservations are suggested. Call us at 412-828-4877, or use our Contact Form to let us know you are coming.